summary <div>A legislative

summary is currently being prepared for this bill by the Parliamentary Information and Research Service of the Library of Parliament. Meanwhile, the following executive

summary is available. <br/><br/>On June 2017, the Minister of Fisheries, Oceans and the Canadian Coast Guard introduced Bill C-55,

An Act to amend the Oceans Act and the Canada Petroleum Resources Act, in the House of Commons and it was given first reading.<br/><br/>Bill C-55, amends the Oceans Act to, among other things,<br/><br/>(

a) clarify the responsibility of the Minister of Fisheries and Oceans to establish a national network of protected areas;<br/>(

b) empower the Minister to designate marine protected areas by order and prohibit certain activities in those areas;<br/>(

c) provide that, within five years after the day on which the order of the Minister designating a marine protected area comes into force, the Minister is to make a recommendation to the Governor in Council to make regulations to replace that order or is to repeal it;<br/>(

d) provide that the Governor in Council and Minister cannot use the lack of scientific certainty regarding the risks posed by any activity as a reason to postpone or refrain from exercising their powers or performing their duties and functions under subsection 35(3) or 35.1(2);<br/>(

e) update and strengthen the powers of enforcement officers;<br/>(

f) update the Act’s offence provisions, in particular to increase the amount of fines and to provide that ships may be subject to the offence provisions; and<br/>(

g) create new offences for a person or ship that engages in prohibited activities within a marine protected area designated by an order or that contravenes certain orders. <br/><br/>This enactment also makes amendments to the Canada Petroleum Resources Act to, among other things,<br/><br/>(

a) expand the Governor in Council’s authority to prohibit an interest owner from commencing or continuing a work or activity in a marine protected area that is designated under the Oceans Act;<br/>(

b) empower the competent Minister under the Canada Petroleum Resources Act to cancel an interest that is located in a marine protected area that is designated under the Oceans Act or in an area of the sea that may be so designated; and<br/>(

c) provide for compensation to the interest owner for the cancellation or surrender of such an interest.</div> House of Commons — First reading: Completed (2017-06-15) House of Commons — Second reading: Completed (2017-10-17) House of Commons — Consideration in committee: Completed (2017-12-11) House of Commons — Report stage: Completed (2018-03-26) House of Commons — Third reading: Completed (2018-04-25) Senate — First reading: Completed (2018-04-26) Senate — Second reading: Completed (2018-12-11) Senate — Consideration in committee: Completed (2019-04-04) Senate — Report stage: Completed (2019-04-09) Senate — Third reading: Completed (2019-05-02) Full bill text is not included in the LEGISinfo JSON export.

Open the official Parliament of Canada bill page for the complete document.